Contemporary figurative artist Kathrin Longhurst was born in communist East Germany. A classically trained figurative painter, Kathrin Longhurst began attending life drawing classes at the age of fourteen. When Kathrin was just fifteen, her family escaped from ‘behind the iron curtain’, relocating to Sweden. This jarring transition from a totalitarian regime to a democracy sparked Kathrin’s passion for exploring the concepts of freedom of speech and expression, concepts that continue to thread through her work today.
Extensive travel provided Kathrin Longhurst with a unique perspective on the role of women in the media, her more recent works referencing not only communist propaganda but also the power of advertising in our lives under a capitalist system. Kathrin Longhurst’s skilfully rendered subjects layer themes of sexuality and freedom, both seducing and challenging the viewer with their ruby lips, luminous bare skin and confronting gaze to illustrate her message that:
‘Propaganda is all around us. It’s not specific to a period of time, a country or a regime…it’s everywhere’ – Kathrin Longhurst.
A well-respected member of the Sydney arts community, Kathrin Longhurst served as vice president for Portrait Artists Australia for some years and is currently founder and director of the innovative Project 504, an art space that fosters collaboration between emerging and established Australian artists. She completed her tenth solo show in 2014 and has been a finalist in numerous awards including the prestigious 2012 Sulman Prize, the Mosman Art Prize, the Portia Geach Award, the Shirley Hannan National Portrait Prize, the Korea Australia Arts Foundation Prize and the WA Black Swan Prize. Kathrin Longhurst’s work is collected widely in Australia and internationally.
PRIZES
The Darling Prize 2020
Archibald Prize 2018, 2021, 2022 (winner Packing Room Prize 2021)
Doug Moran Portrait Prize 2017
Sir John Sulman Prize 2012
Percival Portrait Painting Prize 2016
Portia Geach Memorial Prize 2011, 2012, 2013, 2015, 2017, 2020, 2021, 2022 (winner People’s Choice Prize 2017), 2018, 2019, 2020
Black Swan Prize 2008, 2009
Mosman Art Prize 2009, 2012, 2016
Shirley Hannan National Portrait Award 2008
Beautiful Bizarre Art Prize 2018
KAAF Art Prize 2013, 2017
Willoughby Art Prize 2003
Northern Beaches Art Prize 2020 (winner open category 2020)
SOLO EXHIBITIONS
18+ major sell out solo exhibition nationally and internationally
Including:
2022 “We can be Heroes” Gallery One, Gold Coast
2021 “Fighting Spirit” Gallery One, Gold Coast
2019 “Fighters and Dreamers” Gallery One, Gold Coast
2018 “Ode to Femme” Gallery One, Gold Coast
SELECTED GROUP EXHIBITIONS
34+ major group exhibitions nationally and internationally
Including:
2021 “Woman – Painting all over the World”, European Museum of Contemporary Art (MEAM), Barcelona Spain
2020 “WOMAN”, James Baird Gallery, Canada
2020 “Creator & Muse”, online through 33 Contemporary, Chicago
2019 “Pintando Hoy – Painting Today”, European Museum of Modern Art (MEAM), Barcelona
2019 “Mondo Tondo”, Arcadia Gallery, Los Angeles
2019 Beautiful Bizarre Prize Exhibition, Modern Eden Gallery, San Francisco
2018 “About Peace” Maitland Regional Gallery, Hunter Valley
2018 “Animation Reimagined” Modern Eden Gallery, San Francisco
2017 “International Artist Grand Prix”, Get Art Museum, Taipei, Taiwan
COLLECTIONS
Kathrin’s work is included in corporate, public and private collections in Australia and internationally.
Kathrin’s work is part of the Bennett Collection of Female Figurative